Once again I struck lucky with a book I promised to read for a Reading Between the Lines blog tour.
No! What am I talking about? This was no luck. I knew exactly what sort of story and writing and characters I’d find in this novel. After all, I was lucky enough to be the editor for most of the series when it was published by Darkstroke.
Yes, I’m talking about the Isabel Long mystery series by Joan Livingston and the eighth and latest in the series called
Here’s the Blurb
A homeless man. His murdered mother. A book could be the clue.
Isabel Long’s next case begins during a chance encounter with a homeless man, who says he was 12 when he found his mother murdered in their home.
Abby McKenzie was a well-liked seller of vintage books who owned a store in the hilltown of Dillard. That was 43 years ago and the case was never solved.One obstacle is that several of the suspects are dead, including an avid book collector, a former town official who stalked her, and the man who last saw her alive. Another is that, once again, Isabel must deal with Dillard’s police chief, who ran interference in her other cases.
But that doesn’t deter Isabel nor her mother Maria, her partner in solving crime. She just needs to find the source who will unlock this case.
About the Author
Joan Livingston is the author of novels for adult and young readers, including the Isabel Long Mystery Series, featuring a longtime journalist who becomes an amateur P.I. solving cold cases in rural New England. Finding the Source is the eighth book in the series.
Joan draws upon her own experience as a longtime journalist in Massachusetts and New Mexico to create Isabel Long, a sassy, savvy widow who uses the skills she acquired in the business to solve what appears to be impossible cases. She also relies on her deep knowledge of rural Western Massachusetts, where she lives, to create realistic characters and settings.
My Review
How likely is it that someone would approach a total stranger, not knowing she’s a private investigator, and tell her his mother was murdered 43 years earlier? Probably very likely if that event has driven everything he has done since. If he tells everyone he meets, then in 43 years one of those people will be someone who wants to investigate this unresolved murder.
I was delighted to be able to spend time with some familiar characters, not all of whom are friendly to Isabel, and also some great new characters.
As always, the story kept me gripped, the writing flowed and the climax was unexpected. What a shame it had to end!
This post is going to be different from its predecessors. I’m going to ramble on and see where it takes me.
Miriam Drori, Author 